


Crowning Glories

by GroundZeroFirework



Series: Royal Family [4]
Category: Tales of Zestiria
Genre: F/F, Family, Kinda got lazy with this one, Longer ass one-shot, Romance, but I really wanted to write this fic, it's longer than Reminiscence and the third story's chapter one, seriously, wedding fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-24 13:53:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13215141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GroundZeroFirework/pseuds/GroundZeroFirework
Summary: At her daughter's wedding, Alisha reflects on her greatest triumphs and glories.NOTE: If you haven't done so yet, please read my first three fics to learn more about my OC, Claudia, and how it got to this point in the fic. This takes place 3 years after the third story, when Claudia is 25.





	Crowning Glories

The country of Hyland was blessed with such a wonderful day for the last day of the Sacred Blade Festival this year. The birds were chirping, the sun was high up and the sky was clear blue with not a cloud in sight. It was an auspicious day for the events taking place on the current date.

After all, the Crown Princess of Hyland is also getting married today.

Alisha walked through the Sanctuary of Ladylake, checking on the last minute preparations for anything that can ruin her daughter’s big day. To her surprise, she saw that even Lord Uno was assisting in the preparations.

“Lord Uno, thank you so much for helping.” She said, her voice filled with gratitude.

“Not at all, Queen Alisha. You and Shepherd Rose have done so much for the world, after all. Besides, your daughter’s marriage is a milestone for both humans and seraphim; it would be a symbol for both races that peaceful co-existence between us is indeed a possibility.” He replied with a small smile.

“Yes, indeed…Claudia thought the same. She even used that very same argument to get our nobles to allow her to marry Lailah.” Alisha said as she continued to inspect the decorations.

The path to the wedding of Princess Claudia Aria Diphda and the beautiful Lady of the Lake was not an easy one, as the young princess had to fight tooth and nail a few months ago to make it happen and now it will. Alisha still remembers that day vividly; after all with all the tension in the room, it seemed like everyone was going to start killing each other.

* * *

_Alisha walked into the conference room with Rose and Claudia trailing behind her. Just recently, they have received word from the nobles that they were demanding a meet and of course, they complied. After all, whatever warrants a sudden meet has to be an emergency, right? The moment the guards opened the door, they were suddenly met by the loud squabbling of nobles. The squabbling suddenly grew quiet upon seeing the sight of their sovereign. Claudia was already rubbing her temples at the pending headache as they walked to their seats at the head of the table. She can already hear her ears ringing._

_“Mind telling us what this meeting is all about?” Rose demanded. She was a bit cross that the time she was supposed to be spending with her wife and daughter was interrupted by these squabbling nobles. They carefully thought of what to say next; after all, it would not do well to insult or anger the redheaded queen. She may be of common birth but Queen Alisha has made it clear that she values and respects Queen Rose’s position as her consort and that to insult her is to insult Queen Alisha. Through influence on Alisha alone, it was clear that Rose wielded more power than they did._

_“Your Majesties...” The Chancellor began before giving a small bow. “Your nobles have called for this meeting with you due to a matter we’ve heard regarding the Princess Claudia.”_

_Claudia, who was staring at him in a bored manner as her cheek was propped on her knuckles on the arm of her seat, suddenly gave him her full attention. Her look of boredom was suddenly replaced by disbelief._

_“What did you do, Claudia?” Alisha asked as she turned to her only child._

_“Nothing. I don’t know what this old fogey is talking about.” Claudia defended herself._

_“It’s not what the Princess has done. It’s what the Princess is about to do, Queen Alisha.” Another noble replied with a somewhat nervous tone before continuing._

_“My eldest son, who was taking a walk in town earlier, heard her discussion with the seraphim, Lord Mikleo and Lady Edna. She disclosed her plan to them of…” He hesitated for a moment. “…proposing to the Lady of the Lake.”_

_Needless to say, Claudia was angry; her face conveyed her emotions well. This particular lord’s son is one of the young nobles who simply refused to accept the fact that she had chosen the Lady of the Lake as her lover…and now she had a bone to pick with him._

_“First of all, I haven’t even asked yet. Nothing is set in stone. And clearly, your 27 year old son needs to know that eavesdropping on a private conversation is a rude thing. Eavesdropping on a princess’ conversation with her friends, on the other hand, is a personal insult to me. Did you forget to teach him that, My Lord?”_

_Alisha held her hand out to stop them both from speaking._

_“Yes, we are aware of this development. The Princess has informed us of her plans earlier and we have given her our blessing.” She interjected. The nobles erupted into a squabbling, objecting mess and Claudia slammed her hand down on the table._

_“All of you seem to forget that as future Queen, you’ll obey me! I do not obey any of you! Did the stagnation of the Royal Family’s power during my late uncle’s reign wipe that fact from your minds!?” She yelled out in anger. It’s true that the during her uncle’s reign the Royal Family’s power was slowly losing its power in favor of the nobles and the parliament…but when her mother took the throne, her popularity with the people of Hyland effectively gave that power back to their family instead of the nobles. And Claudia intends to keep that power within the family come hell or high water._

_“Princess Claudia, with all due respect, Lady Lailah may be a seraph but she comes with no political power. You must marry someone who holds such an influence.” One of the calmer nobles stated._

_“I think Princess Claudia is allowed to marry who she wishes.” Another noble responded and a few nobles on his side nodded in agreement. It was all too clear what they were arguing about before they came in; one side didn’t like the idea of losing their ticket to the Royal Family…while the other felt like who to marry was Claudia’s decision alone._

_“Like who? Last I checked, the power is in the Royal Family thanks to the people of Hyland. None of you hold that much political power; you enforce our policies to your individual holdings…you hold seats here in the noble council that good Queen Alisha created…but other than that…none. You can’t just…separate from us just because I refuse to follow your wishes…I would charge you with treason and execute you without a second thought. So, would you rather I marry Prince Leon of Rolance? Or his brother, Prince Louis, who relapses into ailment every now and again? That’s basically an invitation for Rolance to invade us…so I ask you again; who do you see fit to marry me?”_

_The nobles were silent after that. Claudia stood in defiance before she continued._

_“And to say that Lady Lailah has no influence is wrong. Years ago, the Great Shepherd of Order voiced his wish for humans and seraphim to live in peaceful co-existence. Just like the olden days. A marriage with his Prime Lord, one of the seraphim who brought peace by felling the Lord of Calamity, would prove that peace between our races is possible.”_

_Alisha and Rose beamed with pride for their daughter; not only would their child gain happiness by being given the chance to be with the person she loved the most in the sanctity of marriage but…it was also one step closer to seeing Sorey’s dream realized._

_“The princess has a point.” One of the nobles declared. “It’s the seraphim who bless our lands every single day. This could also be our way of showing our gratitude for their continued presence.”_

_“Thank you, my Lord.” Claudia said with a humble nod of her head._

_“It’s decided. The princess will be free to ask the Lady of the Lake for her hand in marriage. This meeting is adjourned.”_

_As expected, the Chancellor stormed out of the room and soon the rest of the nobles followed in a calm manner, leaving the family in the room. Claudia collapsed in her chair and rubbed her head._

_“Your head feeling okay, kid?” Rose asked her in concern._

_“Yep.” She replied. Ever since that head injury for 3 years ago, Claudia has been plagued with headaches at random, but even more when she’s stressed or yelling._

_“I am so proud of you for handling that the way you did, sunbeam.” Alisha said as she wrapped her arms around Claudia from behind the princess’ chair and dropped a kiss on top of her head. Her little princess turned her head and gave her a smile before speaking._

_“Thank you, Mother.”_

* * *

It was definitely one of the moments when Alisha felt absolutely proud of Claudia. More than she usually is. It would only be a week after that when Claudia would propose to Lailah. Much to everyone’s relief, the Lady of the Lake said yes to her proposal. They then decided to hold the wedding at the same time as the last day of the Sacred Blade Festival when Uno can make it so all the guests can see one of the brides. The people of Hyland are allowed to watch the ceremony but the reception itself is reserved to pander to the nobles and dignitaries as always.

“I must be going to check on Claudia. Thank you once again, Lord Uno.” Alisha said in gratitude as she saw that the guests were slowly starting to trickle in. The Lord of the Land turned to her and smiled.

“Of course, Queen Alisha.”

With all that said and done, Alisha walked to one of the side rooms of the sanctuary, where Claudia and Rose were waiting for her. Claudia was pacing around nervously and she hadn’t even finished dressing yet. She was only wearing her pants, boots and her shirt.

“Sunbeam, calm down.” Rose told their daughter, who was running a hand through her hair and making an absolute mess of it as she paced back and forth around the room.

“I’m trying.” Claudia snapped at her.

“Rose, did you scare her again by how much of a mess you were when we were getting married?” Alisha straightforwardly asked her.

“No! Of course not.” Rose defended herself but the pair merely gave her a disbelieving look. “Okay, fine. I may have slipped that I got nervous that you were going to leave me at the altar when we were getting married and then,-“

“Ideas started getting into her head, I think I get it.” Alisha said with a smile on her face before she took her daughter’s face in her hands.

“Sunbeam, do you love Lailah?” A nod. “Do you trust her?” She received another nod in response.

“Then you have nothing to worry about. I was just at my old estate; Lailah is with Mikleo and Edna. Zaveid will be arriving soon as well.”

Claudia nodded as she took a deep breath and sat on the chair, rubbing her head to ward off the oncoming headache. The door opened to reveal Edna barging in.

“Hey, the guests are all here and the preparations are done. Are you done?” She asked Claudia. She visibly deflated upon seeing the nervous expression on the princess.

“Oh god, you’re not gonna throw up like Rose did now, are you?”

Claudia’s eyes widened before looking at her mother. The redhead shrugged before speaking. Alisha slapped a hand to her face; Claudia tended to draw her confidence from Rose. ‘If Mother Rose can do it, I can too’ is what she’d always say. So, if Rose wasn’t that confident during her own wedding, how could she possibly be too?

“Hey, it was a nerve wracking time for me too, you know.”

“If it helps, Lailah is eager and excited to marry you.” Edna dryly informed her. Claudia gave a wide smile in response.

“It does. Thank you, Edna.” The young princess said with an excited tone. Rose stood up and donned her blue cloak with the modified emblem of the Hyland Royal Family; to signify her status as the Queen’s consort, they superimposed a large feather into the emblem. Alisha perched her crown onto her wife’s head as a finishing touch. Naturally, they would attend the wedding, not only because it was their daughter’s but to publicly sanction it as well.

“I’ll go check on things. You calm our little sunbeam down and help her get ready.” Rose told her with an excited smile before leaving the room with Edna following her at her heels. Alisha put her own cloak and crown on and helped Claudia get the rest of her outfit on, putting her own black cloak and crown on her for the finishing touch.

“Are you ready, sunbeam?” She asked as she gently held her daughter’s face in her hands.

“As ready as can be.” Claudia replied with a gentle smile before leaning down to allow Alisha to press her lips to her forehead.

“I love you, sunbeam.” She whispered.

“I love you too, Mother.”

Claudia held her arm out and Alisha took it before walking out the room. Alisha proceeded to walk to stand next to Rose and Zaveid (surprisingly wearing a shirt for this occasion; how he did that without breaking his oath they’ll never know) by the front of the aisle while Claudia herself walked up to the very front to wait for her bride.

“She’s getting antsy.” Rose commented as she kept her eyes on Claudia. Indeed, Alisha saw Claudia fidgeting with her hands as she continued waiting for Lailah.

“I can’t blame her…you were the same after all.” Alisha said with a chuckle.

“Stop reminding me.” The redhead quietly whined. Just like Claudia now, 27 years ago, Rose was a nervous wreck. She didn’t just throw up, but she also fidgeted the same way Claudia was doing so now. According to Mikleo and Zaveid, she was more than willing to just kidnap Alisha and just elope. But all that stopped when she saw Alisha walking down that aisle, Edna and Lailah right behind her. The moments of their wedding that Alisha focused on, however, was the overwhelming love and happiness she felt when she saw Rose waiting for her down that aisle and wearing her Shepherd’s garb for the last time. Now, the years passed by them and both have a few wrinkles and streaks of grey hair here and there and yet that love and happiness never went away just once for the both of them. Finally, the doors of the Sanctuary opened and there stood Lailah, about to be walked down the aisle by Mikleo and aided by Edna, looking even more beautiful than she already was. She wore a heavily modified white version of her usual outfit with an added veil perched on her head. As usual, the outfit merely enhanced the Lady of the Lake’s natural beauty. They could’ve sworn they heard Claudia’s breath hitch from where they were standing.

“Breathe, kid, breathe…don’t pass out.” They heard Zaveid mutter. Looking towards their daughter, they panicked internally when they saw that Claudia seems to have forgotten how to breathe. They all let out a collective sigh of relief when Claudia managed to hold her arm out to her bride and led her up the steps to kneel before the priest marrying them, commencing the ceremony.

“Well, she sure did a lot better than she did when she was about to propose.” Mikleo commented as he and Edna walked back to stand beside them. Both queens let out a quiet chuckle as they remembered the day Claudia proposed.

* * *

_“Are you ready?” The water seraph asked Claudia for the nth time as she continued to pace around the room, her spectators other than him being her parents, Edna and Zaveid._

_“You’ll do fine, kid. Whew…if I was given the chance to do the same to Theodora…I’d take it in a heartbeat.” Zaveid commented with a wide grin on his face. Had this event occurred a thousand years ago, Zaveid would’ve been sad and reluctant to even speak Theodora’s name but…now…he freely says her name with a deep fondness and a quick look back to the good times they had._

_“Well…but what if she says no? I’m not sure if things could be the same after that.” Claudia retorted as she fidgeted with her hands. Edna took that as an opportunity to hit her in the head with her umbrella._

_“Ow! Edna!”_

_“Would you relax? You’re making me dizzy. You think she would’ve stuck around for as long as she did if she didn’t see a potential future with you?” The earth seraph questioned her._

_“I don’t know I thought she just let me court her out of pity.” The young princess pessimistically muttered as she opened the velvet box she was holding in her hands, again for the nth time._

_“Claudia, have a little more faith in Lailah will you? You’re bumming us out.” Rose said as she rubbed her face in frustration. Finally, Claudia stopped pacing as she took a deep breath, nodded, and put the box in her pocket._

_“You know what; you’re right. You guys are absolutely right.” She said as she put her coat on. “So…how do I look?”_

_“Dashing, sunbeam. She’ll find it hard to say no.” Alisha said to assure her only child. She wasn’t exactly lying. Claudia did look dashing with the outfit she was wearing; a fine ensemble consisting of dark pants, boots, a black coat, white shirt and a red vest with black details. What she wasn’t too sure about was Lailah NOT giving their daughter the big fat “NO” to her proposal. But hey, if it calms the kid down…_

_“Alright…time to go.” Claudia said as she proceeded to open the door, Rose trailing after her. Before she walked out the door, however, she suddenly turned._

_“OOHH, BUT WHAT IF SHE SAYS NO!?”_

_Before anyone could give a response, Rose turned her back around and shoved her out the door before proceeding to lock them all inside Claudia’s room._

_“Don’t even think about hiding in any other room! I had guards posted in every one of them to kick you back out!” The redheaded queen yelled through the door. After hearing Claudia mumbling angrily to herself as she walked away, Rose gave them the signal._

_“Ready?” She asked them and they all nodded. They all peeked out the window for a few minutes and after confirming that Claudia has indeed left the palace, they all snuck out via a window and proceeded to follow her quietly._

xxx

_They all followed Claudia and Lailah to her usual picnic spot with Lailah at the cliff overlooking Ladylake in Lakehaven Heights. They stayed a respectable distance from the couple to ensure they wouldn’t be scene but also would allow them to hear their conversation._

_“Uh…boring…when is she gonna get to it?” Edna commented as they continued to sneak around and watch._

_“Probably never if she hears you and realizes we’re watching her.” Mikleo replied, earning himself a poke on the rib with her parasol. So as to not give them away, he stifled his yelp of pain._

_“Well, she picked quite the romantic setting for a romantic proposal. Kinda reminds me of when I proposed to Alisha.” Rose stated as she kept her eyes on her daughter. The blonde smiled as she too fondly remembered Rose’s proposal. Like Claudia, it was clear that she was also nervous that day, but also unlike her, she made a good job of not showing it. Must come with the territory of being an assassin, not showing what you truly feel._

_“You mean your unromantic proposal of blurting out ‘Let’s get married’? This in no way resembles that.” Zaveid interjected as he turned his head towards the redhead._

_“Shut up, that doesn’t count.” Rose retorted._

_“Quiet.” Alisha hissed at them. Immediately, they did so and listened on the conversation._

_“You seem more nervous than usual today, Claudia.” Lailah commented as she watched the young princess chug what was probably her fifth glass of wine._

_“Um…am I? I…didn’t realize…heh…” She said in a vain attempt to hide her nervousness. Whoever christened booze with the title ‘liquid courage’ was a damn liar. This wasn’t giving her any courage at all._

_“Oh wow, she’s doing horribly.” Rose mumbled out in disbelief._

_“You know you can tell me anything, right?” The Lady of the Lake coyly asked her and Claudia nodded in response. Okay, now or never. She tried to recall Rose’s advice; bring out the ring, take a deep breath and get down on one knee even if she’s sitting. Unfortunately for her, her brain chose the right moment to flake out on her._

_“WILL YOU MARRY ME?”_

_She all but yelled that sentence out. The entire area was silent, save for the chirping of the crickets and cicadas. Zaveid was trying so hard not to laugh out loud._

_“She…is…so like you.” He managed to mumble in between chuckles while the rest of his companions buried their faces in their palms. They can see how shocked Lailah was and how pale Claudia suddenly became…as if she wants the ground to just swallow her whole._

_“Weeks…I drilled it into her head for weeks ’don’t make the same mistake I did’ and what does she do?” Rose mutters out loud._

_“She makes the same mistake you did.” Mikleo and Edna simultaneously replied._

_“She makes the same mistake I did.” The redheaded queen says in disbelief. Alisha held a hand to silence them before pointing towards the couple’s direction and listened to their conversation._

_“No! That wasn’t how I was planning to ask that!” Claudia said through gritted teeth as she ran her hands through her hair in frustration. She wanted to pull them out. She wanted to level the entire area and hopefully a flying boulder would crush her to get her away from this embarrassment. But, she had to keep a level head and she did her best to do so as she pulled the box from her pocket and opened it before a shell shocked Lailah._

_“So…um…you’re…free to say no. I’m guessing you will after that botched proposal. So…bye…” Claudia squeaked out as she tried to stand and was more than ready to do the walk of shame back to Ladylake. However, before she could, she felt a hand tugging her back down. Claudia looked towards Lailah and saw the tears streaming down her face._

_“Oh no.” She mumbled as her eyes widened. Her proposal was that bad that she made Lailah cry!? Uncharacteristically, the young princess started panicking. “Please don’t cry. I’m sorry. I won’t ask again. We can just go back to the way things were before this night!”_

_“Ask me again.”_

_Claudia’s eyes widened in disbelief upon hearing the Lady of the Lake’s words; did she hear that right? Did she seriously just say ‘ask me again’?_

_“Ask me again. But slowly…and properly.” Lailah said as tears streamed down her cheeks. With a nod, Claudia presented the ring before her again and she kneeled even though Lailah was still sitting. She took a deep breath and a moment to get her head on straight._

_“Lailah…you are the love of my life. While I can’t promise you a life free of hardship especially if you agree, you’ll be my consort. I can, however, promise you a life of happiness with me. I swear that I will give everything I am to make the succeeding years the happiest you’ve ever lived. So…with all that said…will you marry me?”_

_Claudia was about to panic once again when she saw that Lailah’s tears were freely flowing down her cheeks once more until she realized that she was also nodding._

_“Yes.” She answered in between tears. “Yes, yes, I will marry you.”_

_Claudia breathed a sigh of relief before smiling widely and putting the ring on her finger. She met Lailah halfway to kiss her out of happiness. When they separated, she yelled out._

_“You guys can come out now!”_

_Their spectators were surprised as they slowly came out of their hiding place._

_“Awww…how’d you know it was us?” Zaveid asked in surprise._

_“Really? With Edna and Mikleo in the same area? They’re not exactly the most subtle of conversationalists when they’re together.” The young princess said with a smile, too happy to be angry that someone was actually spying on them._

_“Nevermind that! My baby just got her girl to marry her. I’m so happy!” Rose said as she trapped her daughter in a bone crushing hug. “You grew up so fast!”_

_While Rose was gushing, and at the same time, bawling her eyes out, over how fast Claudia grew and basically being over the moon that her daughter was getting married, Alisha approached the Lady of the Lake and gave her a gentler hug than the one Claudia was currently receiving._

_“Congratulations, Lailah.” She whispered before they watched the rest of the seraphim playfully scold Claudia for her earlier blunder._

_“Thank you, Alisha. I hope you don’t mind me stealing your daughter from you.” The Lady of the Lake playfully stated, earning a laugh from the blonde queen._

_“Of course not. I’ve long considered you and the others as family but now…you’re officially joining us. Welcome to the family, Lailah.” She replied. Lailah could only smile in happiness before excusing herself and walked back to her new fiancée._

_Alisha, on the other hand, stayed rooted to where she stood as she tried to process tonight’s events. Rose was right; Claudia grew up so fast. She remembered when she was just a small baby in their arms, then as toddler learning her first steps, her first birthday, her first time handling a sword, along with the smaller but still memorable moments that happened in Claudia’s life. It was like she blinked…and then suddenly, Claudia was an adult. Granted, they had her fostered in Pendrago for the better part of her teenage years...but still. She wiped a tear from her eye and walked over to them before embracing her daughter._

_So many moments and yet…this is another one when, for finding someone she can love and hold onto for the rest of her life, Alisha felt extremely proud of Claudia._

* * *

Alisha’s reminiscence ended just in time to actually have her attention focused on the tail end of the ceremony. She noticed that Claudia finally relaxed and got through her vows just fine and as did Lailah. Finally, they exchanged rings and the priest finally made the gesture that would seal the couple’s fate.

“Here it comes.” They heard Zaveid mutter, clearly a bit nervous that Claudia was going to mess even _this_ up. To their collective relief, she didn’t; she managed to lift the veil up and gently press her lips to her new bride. The Sanctuary erupted into cheers and applauses after that and slowly lulled down to a quiet as Alisha walked up the steps and Lailah kneeled before her once more. Now, it was time for the second part of the ceremony. While Claudia would’ve just liked to put this part off to just enjoy their wedding day, this was something Alisha can absolutely not let slide.

They all knew that if Lailah marries the crown princess, she too would be a Princess of Hyland. To declare her new position, the Queen of Hyland had no choice but to invest Lailah in as a Princess of Hyland on the same day as her wedding day. Not only would it let Rolance know that their daughter is pretty much “off the market” as they say, but it would also be demanding that their nobles give Lailah the respect she deserves as a member of the Royal Family. It took a while to convince Claudia to let her do it on the same day but due to Lailah’s urging and the fact that it would just be a short addition anyway, she gave in eventually. The priest approached Alisha with a silver crown, similar to the one Claudia was wearing now, while Claudia gently removed the veil from her new wife’s head. She gently took it in her hands and, with the same love and kindness she’s shown to others her entire life, perched it on Lailah’s head. Just as she did to Rose years ago.

“Rise, Lailah, Princess of Hyland.”

Lailah rose from her kneeling position and Claudia gently took her hand once more as the Sanctuary erupted into applauses and cheers once more. The newly wedded couple walked down the aisle and out of the Sanctuary as the guests followed after them. The townspeople greeted the couple with well wishes as the Sacred Blade Festival’s last day finally commenced. After partaking in the celebrations for a moment, the pair returned to Roundtabel Palace and celebrated with their nobles. The moment they entered they were bombarded with even more well wishes from the nobles. Alisha watched in amusement as they took things in stride…even though Claudia looks like she’s having a hard time concealing how overwhelmed she actually is.

“Reminds you of us on our wedding day, doesn’t it?” Rose asked her as she handed Alisha a cup of wine.

“A bit. You definitely handled the well wishes better than Claudia did.” The blonde replied as she took the cup and drank from it. Rose wrapped an arm around her wife and Alisha laid her head on her shoulder.

“I’m so proud of her.” Rose mumbled as she kept her eyes on her daughter and her new wife.

“So am I.” The blonde responded before looking up at her. “I think we were good parents to her. Now, it’s up to her to go through life.”

“I don’t know about leaving her to go through life all alone…but we were damn great parents, that’s for sure.” The redhead said in her usual laidback manner. Their tender moment was interrupted when Emperor Lyte approached and cleared his throat to gain their attention.

“Queen Rose, Queen Alisha…may I say a few words? It has something to do with Princess Claudia’s wedding request.” He said with a small smile.

“Please, Your Grace.” Alisha said with a gentle smile. Rose loudly clapped her hands to gain everyone’s attention and like a charm…it worked.

“My Lords and Ladies, Emperor Lyte has a few words to say to the newlyweds.” She announced. Alisha beamed at her with pride; in private, her wife was the same as she was when they first met but in front of their nobles, she knows how to refine herself. It took a while but she did it for Alisha’s sake. Emperor Lyte cleared his throat and spoke.

“Ladies and Gentlemen…years ago, I goaded the young Princess Claudia into dancing with the Lady Lailah when she was still courting the beautiful Lady of the Lake. I had realized a long time ago that my action might have displeased the young princess and for that I apologize to the both of them.” He said before bowing his head. Claudia nodded her head in acknowledgement of his apology as Lailah’s arm was still wrapped around hers.

“What I wasn’t expecting was that Princess Claudia would send me a letter along with our invitation, months before her wedding, saying that the experience, her first public waltz with the woman she fell in love with, was actually very memorable for her. And with that, she requested that I bring those very same musicians to play the same song they first danced to 4 years ago. To play that same song to dance their first dance to as spouses. So, Princess Claudia, Lady Lailah, whenever you’re ready…my musicians are. Rolance congratulates you both on your union.”

Emperor Lyte’s speech was met with applauses, not just from Claudia and Lailah but all the guests as well. Once the applause died down, Claudia shed her cloak and took Lailah’s hand. The musicians, who were ready as the Emperor of Rolance said, started playing the requested music.

“I remember this dance.” Alisha whispered as she watched them with a gentle smile. She was the one who taught Claudia this particular dance and Lailah knew it by heart from observing the princess’ childhood lessons. She was quite happy that her daughter still remembered every step. One arm tucked to the princess’ back, Claudia and Lailah’s left hands came together as they rounded on their spot on the middle of the dance floor before switching hands and rounding the opposite direction. They took each other’s left hands and held it above their heads as Claudia took a step backwards while Lailah stepped forward. A little hop step from Lailah before Claudia twirled her, followed by a lift. The dance continued as their audience watched them. Alisha thought back to Claudia’s childhood and at that moment, she realized…her daughter and Lailah…it was a match made in heaven. They’ve always been close even when she was still a child. And speaking of Claudia’s childhood, she thought back to one event that made her realize even more that fate always meant for them to be together.

* * *

_“Say ‘aahh’, Claudia.”_

_“Aahh.”_

_Rose smiled as she put a grape in 5 year old Claudia’s mouth. The little princess happily ate the fruit and continued to lean back into Alisha’s warm embrace. The family was having a picnic in their usual spot by the cliff overlooking Ladylake._

_“Mommy, more please!” The little princess requested with a happy smile._

_“Of course, sunbeam.” Alisha said as she took another grape and fed it to her. Claudia crawled away from Alisha and snuggled up to Rose next, earning a smile from both her mothers._

_“Hey, Mikleo and the others are here.” The redhead pointed out as continued to cuddle with her daughter. True enough, the four seraphim that once accompanied them on their journey were walking together towards the family. Claudia immediately perked up and ran towards them, being met halfway through by Zaveid. The wind seraph immediately put her on his shoulders, her laughter resounding throughout the area as they walked back to her parents._

_“Hey…there’s the happy couple.” He commented as he let the little girl down._

_“Hiya!” Rose greeted them with her usual laidback smile and a wave before seeing Claudia move on to greet Edna, Mikleo, and Lailah. Though, Lailah gets a bigger and longer hug than the other three did before running off to go do her own business of playing around in the dirt. They sat down and joined the little family on their picnic. Their arrival was due to the little princess’ request and since she herself asked so nicely and politely (and, though Edna would never admit it, cutely), they couldn’t disagree._

_“So, how is Claudia?” Mikleo asked them as he observed her from where he sat._

_“She’s doing quite well, thank you for asking.” Alisha responded politely as ever. It wasn’t exactly a lie but it wasn’t exactly true either._

_“She’s alright…but loud noises still bother her and make her cry though. It’s supposed to be normal for kids her age but not when it’s only people talking around in the market that gets to her.” Rose added in a somewhat worried tone. “She’s growing up fine though. Getting stronger by the day. Soon enough she’ll be ready for training.”_

_“Typical. Already thinking of training her.” Edna commented as she grabbed a sandwich._

_“Hey…gotta start them young. Brad did it to me. I don’t see why she shouldn’t have the same opportunity.” She retorted as she popped a grape in her mouth. Alisha merely chuckled at the topic; while Rose does have plans to train their daughter to fight, surely she’s not crazy enough to teach her at such a young age, right? Right!? Unfortunately, before she could voice that question out, Claudia returned, having made a bit of a mess of her blue dress._

_“Oh, Claudia…sweetie…look at your dress.” She stated as she dusted some dirt off of the dress. Claudia, however, didn’t pay her mother any heed as she presented both Edna and Lailah with princessias that she plucked off the surrounding area. They all noticed how Lailah got more flowers than Edna did._

_“Thanks, kid.” Edna said as she took the flowers Claudia was offering her and put one on her hair and kept the rest. Lailah took the flowers from the little princess’ hands with a happy smile._

_“Oh my! Thank you, Claudia. They’re beautiful.”_

_Claudia gave her a wide grin before she cuddled back up to Alisha. Lailah reached out and patted little Claudia on her head before giving that same hand for Claudia to hold onto. Alisha observed the two with a smile; Claudia was quite taken with the Lady of the Lake and is the only person she’s quite calm around other than her mothers. Lailah always did have that effect on their little princess. And it was good for Lailah (and the others) to be there too…she can already see that Claudia would have the same lonely childhood she did due to her parents, her station, and the circumstances of her birth. Alisha was quite proud and happy that Claudia was making friends with the seraphim in Ladylake. Her child was already proving to her that Sorey’s dream of peaceful co-existence between seraphim and humans can become a reality._

_“She’ll grow to be a fine lady.” Zaveid said with an optimistic grin. “Aren’t you worried of all the boys that’ll be chasing after her one day?” He added with a sly, teasing grin aimed at Rose._

_“Ugh…don’t even remind me.” The redhead complained as she lobbed a grape at him, which he easily caught in his mouth._

_“What? No man is good enough for Mama Rose’s precious princess?” Edna commented with that smug smile of hers. She caught the apple that Rose threw at her and started eating it._

_“Or woman! No man or woman is good enough for my baby girl.” She commented as she kissed Claudia’s forehead, who was too preoccupied with playing with Lailah’s hand to listen to their conversation. “If you ask Alisha, she’d say the same.”_

_“Is that right?” Mikleo asked with a small smile as he turned to the blonde, who suddenly found herself hard pressed to find an answer._

_“Well…I’d rather she just enjoy her childhood for now. But…if she will be courted, they’re going to have a hard time gaining my approval.” Alisha said in a suddenly protective manner as she held Claudia close to her, earning chuckles from her companions._

_“I never expected you to be the overprotective type, Alisha.” Lailah stated as she grabbed a napkin and wiped the dirt off of little Claudia’s cheek._

_“Oh my, is it wrong of me? I read that having overprotective parents can sometimes be suffocating for a child.” She said with wide eyes full of panic._

_“Of course not…it’s normal for parents to be protective of their children. Especially when it comes to topics such as this.” Mikleo assured her with a small smile._

_“But hey…why don’t we ask the princess herself?” Zaveid said with a wide grin. “Hey, Claudia.”_

_The little girl looked up from whatever was occupying her attention towards the wind seraph with big curious eyes._

_“When you grow up and be a big girl, who would you marry? Surely there are some noble boys out there that caught the little princess’ eye.” He said as he tickled her sides, earning happy laughs from Claudia._

_“Hey, hang on!” Rose protested but was silenced when her wife took her hand on her own. It was WAAAAY too early for Zaveid to be talking about these things with Claudia. It’s always going to be way too early for them to have this discussion. Always._

_“What’s marry?” She asked them._

_“It’s what mama and I are.” Alisha answered for her. “It’s when you love someone a lot that you want to spend the rest of your life with them.”_

_That was the best way she could dumb things down to her 5 year old child._

_“Really? Then why not mama and mommy? I wanna marry mama and mommy because I love them lots!” She innocently declared with a big smile on her face, making the people around her laugh._

_“That’s sweet of you, Claudia. Mama and I love you too but you gotta marry someone other than us.” She said with a smile. Claudia hummed for a moment as if she was thinking things through before pointing at a certain fire seraph._

_“Lailah! I’m gonna marry Lailah when I’m a big girl!” She declared with an excited smile. She got off Alisha’s lap and ran to give Lailah the biggest hug she could with her little arms. The Lady of the Lake, of course, returned the hug Claudia was giving her._

_“Awww…how sweet of you, Claudia!” She said with an excited smile before Claudia separated from her and sat on her lap instead of returning to her mothers._

_Little did any of them know, Claudia would actually stay true to her word._

* * *

Alisha snapped out of her reminiscence once more to see Claudia and Lailah finishing up their first dance with the last few steps; Claudia dipped her new wife down before bringing her up to lift her a second time. Once she was on the ground once more, they put a hand to each other’s cheeks as they rounded their spot once again before they brought their hands together. Claudia twirled Lailah away from her before taking her hand as they met in the middle of the dance floor again. Claudia kneeled before her wife and pressed a gentle kiss to her knuckle as Lailah looked at her with a fond smile. She stood up once more as the song died down and they both met halfway for a gentle kiss, earning the applause of their audience. They both gave a bow of gratitude before shaking Emperor Lyte’s hand to thank him. The party went back into full swing after that with Claudia sharing a dance with both her mothers and Lailah dancing with the other seraphim. Finally, Alisha decided to take Lailah for a dance. If only to talk to her.

“You look wonderful, Lailah.” Alisha complimented her as they danced the steps to the waltz fitting of the current song playing.

“Thank you, Alisha…you look wonderful as well.” The Lady of the Lake replied.

“I’m sorry if I sound a bit hostile but…please do take care of Claudia. She’s my only child and you know how much Rose and I love and treasure her.” She said without any preamble. As expected, she was only met with a kind and understanding smile from Lailah.

“Of course. I never expected us to end up where we are now…but I do love Claudia. And I promise you that I’ll take care of her…just as I know she will take care of me.” She replied. That answer was enough for Alisha. She didn’t need to put Lailah to some sort of test after all; she had Alisha’s approval from the start but it only took her this long to fully realize that due to those reservations in the back of her head that she never dared voice out. The song ended and Mikleo took Lailah to dance the next song while Claudia took Alisha.

“Mother dear, I hope you’re not terrifying my new wife.” She teased. Alisha let out a laugh at her remark.

“Of course not. I just…asked that she take good care of you, that’s all.” Alisha replied as she cupped her daughter’s cheek.

“I remember when I was teaching you how to dance. You’d stand on my feet and we’d just…dance to the beat. Now, look at you; grown up and married. I love you, sunbeam…and we’ll always be there for you; through your glories and your struggles.”

She wiped the silent, happy tears trailing from her daughter’s cheeks before Claudia spoke.

“I love you too. You and Mother Rose never had the perfect marriage…but to me…it was. You both were the perfect parents to me as well. Your marriage…I hope Lailah and I will have that same loving relationship as well as the years go by. Even when I am old and grey.”

Both chuckled at her remark as they walked out of the palace…with everyone gathering there, they realized that it was time for Claudia and Lailah to go on their honeymoon trip. However, for their actual wedding night, they would be spending it Alisha’s private estate that she lived in before she became queen. Everyone said their farewells to the happy couple as they got into their carriage and they rode off into the night to spend their first night together as spouses. Alisha felt Rose wrap an arm around her.

“She’s all grown up now, isn’t she?” The redhead mused out loud.

“Yes…and I know she’ll have a wonderful life ahead of her. I’m proud of her for that.” Alisha replied with a fond smile.

She’s seen Claudia’s struggles and saw her rise above them all. Claudia had her triumphs and glories and Alisha was there for them all. No doubt there would be many more and she would be there to see them all.

And for a proud mother like her, nothing would make her happier. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I see you've read the second to the last story in this series. Thank you so much for reading it. I got a bit lazy at the end so I don't really consider this my finest work but I hope you guys still liked this. Please leave a kudos and a comment if you did. Not a lot of people did that to "The Bright Side to Every Blunder" so I wonder if I'm doing something wrong. Anyways, the next story will bring Claudia's story and this series to an end so please look forward to it.
> 
> Anyways, if you all wanna see the dance that Claudia and Lailah are doing, just check this link out on youtube: watch?v=IAcbbQ26Kdo&t=96s
> 
> It's basically the same dance with minor alterations and is also the same dance as their dance in Reminiscence.
> 
> Happy New Year to everyone by the way! Here's hoping that 2018 will be a kinder year to us all.


End file.
